Relationships are a delicate matter. You never know what may happen. One moment, you could be sitting next to your significant other, thinking this relationship will last forever, and the next, you might be throwing heavy objects at each other. Being happy in a relationship and making it last forever are two different things.
Let’s explore how to understand the direction your relationship is heading.
1. Helping Each Other Having the willingness to help each other is very important. For instance, if one person cooks, the other should help by washing the dishes. One person may wash the clothes while the other dries, irons, and puts them away. It’s not about placing all household responsibilities on one person but sharing tasks so that neither feels overwhelmed. Over time, this doesn’t seem like a chore but becomes part of the routine.
2. Being on the Same Page In a healthy relationship, both partners should prioritize the same things. But if you’re in the wrong relationship, this may not happen. For example, while one partner might be focusing on their career, the other might be dreaming of having children. One partner may want to settle down, while the other is still enjoying life with friends. Relationships become stronger when both partners share the same priorities, be it settling down or working toward any significant goal together.
3. Mutual Communication Have you ever noticed the conversations between Lily and Marshall in the popular English series How I Met Your Mother? In a healthy relationship, both people communicate. It’s not just about discussing what to eat or which movie to watch but engaging in conversations about important topics like life decisions, likes, and dislikes. The couple that talks will stay together because they solve problems before they get worse.
4. Acknowledging Your Mistakes Everyone makes mistakes. There’s a difference between making a mistake and admitting it. However, there are limits to this. It’s easier to forgive minor issues, but physical harm is something that should not be forgiven.
5. Avoiding ‘That Mistake’ By ‘that mistake,’ we mean the kind of errors that are difficult, or sometimes impossible, to forgive. These include physical abuse, cheating, and infidelity. These mistakes often create cracks in relationships. If both partners want a relationship to last, they will never make such mistakes because they value each other too much.
6. Both Partners Having Control You might think that this is obvious, but many relationships are controlled by a third person, and that never ends well. Someone wishing you well and trying to control your relationship is very different. Even parents, despite bringing us into the world and caring for us, can’t and shouldn’t control our relationships once we’re adults. No matter how solid a relationship is, it can be disrupted by a third party’s control, whether it’s a well-wisher, friend, or even parents.
7. Preventing Breakup Early On In today’s world, if something breaks, we simply throw it away and buy a new one. This might be true for things, but it’s not the case with relationships. Life, like the ocean, has its ups and downs. There will be good times and bad times. When things are tough, don’t give up; instead, identify the problem and work on fixing it. A broken phone can be thrown away, but not the person you love.
In the end, every relationship is unique. We’ve highlighted the main points here, but the truth is, that human hearts are complex. They come together in mysterious ways, love each other, and spend their lives in that same love. And if you know how to do that, you’re probably already aware of what it takes.
